Chemistry: molecular biology and microbiology – Animal cell – per se ; composition thereof; process of... – Avian cell – per se
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-15
2003-06-03
Saucier, Sandra E. (Department: 1651)
Chemistry: molecular biology and microbiology
Animal cell, per se ; composition thereof; process of...
Avian cell, per se
C435S345000, C119S006800
Reexamination Certificate
active
06573097
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of avian egg fertilization. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of fertilizing an egg in a shell.
2. Background Art
TRADITIONAL BREEDING
Typically, breeding in the poultry industry is carried out by either one of two systems:
Floor Breeding Program
The first system is called “floor breeding” and it is utilized to produce the vast majority of all commercial hatching eggs. In this system males are simply added into the flocks of females at a typical ratio of between 10 and 15 percent. The floor breeding system, even with its inefficiencies, is currently the low-cost system for producing hatching eggs because it requires less labor than competing systems. Average hatch rates range from approximately 83% for broiler breeders to 92% for layer breeders. Even though this system has been the backbone of the poultry industry for many years, it has many limitations.
Size Versus Reproductive Capacity
Floor breeding is no longer practiced at all in turkeys due to the intense selection for increased muscle yield that has rendered commercial turkey breeds incapable of natural mating. The same trend is being seen in broilers. Selection for increased size in broilers has compromised fertility and mating ability and it is predicted that fertility will continue to decline as body weights increase. This presents a dilemma for poultry producers because decreases in fertility have a direct negative impact on their bottom line.
Inefficient Waste Removal
Natural mating must be performed on solid floors to avoid injury to the birds. This design requirement precludes the use of automated waste removal systems and necessitates manual cleaning between successive flocks of birds. This adds to labor and overhead costs while decreasing the productive use of facilities.
Egg Production & Quality
Since eggs remain in the houses with the flock until collection time; eggs are frequently contaminated with dirt and fecal material which can reduce hatch rates. In addition, typically between 3 and 5% of the eggs produced in floor houses are laid directly on the floor rather than in the provided laying boxes and must be discarded.
Inefficient Space and Equipment Utilization
Maintaining males and females together in a floor house requires the installation of two independent feed and watering systems because of different nutritional and production requirements for each sex. It also requires the installation of laying boxes and automated egg collection systems. All of this equipment occupies limited floor space in the house. For these reasons floor rearing is not an efficient use of housing space and equipment when compared to stacked cage systems.
Mortality & Fertility
Aggressive males tend to fight, leading to higher male mortality rates. Male mortality rates average 13% in floor houses versus 2% in cage houses. Male aggressiveness towards hens during mating gradually takes a toll in the form of increased female mortality, decreased fertility, and a decrease in the length of the egg production cycle. As the males in one flock get older, fertility starts to decline. The standard solution is to “spike” the flock with young males to improve fertility. However, this sets off another round of aggression with a short-term decrease in fertility and an increase in mortality. Disease is more common in floor houses because of the constant contact of the birds with bedding and waste material that harbor pathogenic organisms.
Decreased Feed Conversion
Controlling feed costs is critical to running a competitive poultry operation. Feed costs can account for up to 60% of the cost of raising a broiler chick, for instance. In one study, birds raised on the floor consumed 20% more food for the same amount of production when compared to those raised in cages. This difference is due to the increased level of social interactions as well as the generally higher level of physical activity seen in floor houses. Males consume more feed than females, making the floor breeding system inefficient with respect to feed consumption due to the large numbers of males that must be maintained.
Limited Flexibility in Breeding Strategies
Due to the fact that males and females are housed in one large group in the floor breeding house arrangement, the breeder is very restricted in their ability to perform advanced crosses and selections on the breeding stock. For this reason floor houses are primarily utilized as a tool for the multiplication of pre-selected genetic stocks to produce final commercial crosses.
Artificial Insemination Breeding Program
Another system utilized to generate hatching eggs is called artificial insemination (AI). AI is widely practiced by “primary breeders” at the top of the breeding pyramid but not generally used by commercial producers at the bottom of the pyramid. Primary breeders are companies that own and improve the elite pedigreed genetic lines that are crossed to produce the final commercial products-broilers, layers and turkeys. The quantities of birds increase exponentially as you move down the breeding pyramid from the pedigreed lines through the grandparent stock, parent stock, and finally to the actual commercial birds. While birds of elite genetic makeup at the top of the pyramid are very expensive, birds at the bottom are inexpensive. For these reasons, different operational models are utilized for reproduction at different level.
In the AI system, males and females are housed in the same houses but are caged separately. The female cages typically hold between two and five hens, while the male cages hold a single rooster. AI programs address many of the limitations of the floor breeding houses listed above. For example, since cage houses are utilized, waste removal can be performed automatically. Houses are generally much cleaner, leading to fewer disease problems. Egg production is improved because eggs roll out of the cages and is not laid on dirty floors. Equipment and housing space are utilized more efficiently. Mortality is minimized due to a decrease in social aggression and disease. Fertility levels are maintained more consistently because social and physical interaction are eliminated from the process of reproduction. Feed conversion is increased. And finally, the production system has increased flexibility for doing advanced crosses and selections. This capability is absolutely required by primary breeders in order to improve their genetic stocks and to stay competitive in the marketplace. While most of the advantages listed above are also important for commercial-level multiplication breeders, they are offset by one crucial shortcoming, the high labor costs associated with AI programs.
AI programs replace the innate sexual drive of poultry with human labor. Workers must manually collect semen from males in cages and inseminate females in cages on a 7-day rotation. The level of sophistication required in these programs mandates a skilled workforce. For this reason, the AI program, though operationally superior, is economically impractical for commercial-level breeding programs. Even the use of dwarf hens, an innovation that allows similar egg production with about 30% less feed consumption, can not justify the increased labor costs of the Al program for commercial level multiplication breeders.
REPRODUCTIVE PROCESS
At the time of ovulation, the avian oocyte comprises a blastodisc, or germinal disc, which contains the female pronucleus, and a yellow yolk mass. The germinal disc and yolk mass are surrounded by the oocyte cell membrane, called the oolemma. Surrounding the oolemma is the perivitelline layer (PL), also referred to as the inner perivitelline layer (IPL). The space between the oolemma and the IPL is termed the perivitelline space, which is traversed by granulosa cells. Once the oocyte is released from its ovarian follicle, it is referred to as an ovum. The ovum moves into the oviduct where it is engulfed by the infundibulum, where fertilization occurs if sperm are present.
As the
Cantrell Tim
Wooten Andrew
Afremova Vera
Ovo Biosciences, Inc.
Saucier Sandra E.
LandOfFree
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